Stories about designing, making, and wearing your own clothing

Sewing your own clothing can change your perspective in surprising ways. Seamwork Radio brings you personal stories about all the ways designing, making, and wearing your own clothing can alter your life. We talk to artists, designers, and everyday creators about how the act of sewing has helped them slow down, get to know their bodies, discover their own identity, and take part in the growing movement to revive the art of sewing.

In 2008, sewing blogger Melissa Fehr revealed something on her blog: she’d been diagnosed with a rare blood disorder. Soon, she’d need a complete bone marrow transplant. In this episode, Melissa shares how her relationship with her body changed before and after this life-changing experience – and how this relationship eventually led her to designing her own patterns.

In September 2015, Marie wrote a post on her sewing blog called “Loving a Person, Not Their Gender.” In that post, she talked about the experience of having her partner come out as transgender. In today’s story, we talk to Marie and her girlfriend Charlotte about that experience, and what came after. Editor’s note: At …

Have you ever wished for a way to just punch in your measurements somewhere and get a pattern that’s drafted just for you? That’s the idea behind makemypattern.com, a menswear-focused website created by Belgian sewist Joost De Cock. Joost went from only sewing a few curtains and pillows to making his own wardrobe to creating …

Creating something from nothing is Leah Price’s passion. After spending ten years in what she describes as almost complete isolation, caring for her two children with special needs, Leah discovered a deep and abiding creative energy in repurposing what is unloved and wasted.

Growing up in Oklahoma, Matthew always had the sense that he wasn’t “normal.” As he grew up, he began to ask questions. What’s wrong with being interested in “feminine” things? And what does it say about how we view women?

Charlie Wensley learned the hard way that trying to fit a pre-existing mold can have devastating effects. But before she rediscovered her love of making clothes, she struggled to meet her own expectations about the kind of person she thought she was supposed to be.

Jenny Rushmore is the sort of person that lights up a room. She’s the blogger behind Cashmerette and a founder of The Curvy Sewing Collective. But Jenny’s confidence and warmth came only after years of bullying and insecurity. Hear how Jenny not only overcame the harshness of childhood bullying, but has helped spread the message of self-acceptance.